AR/VR: Hype? Or Really The Next Big Thing?

I used to be quite into tech. Always had the newest hardware. Always up to date on the newest software and features.
But one day I stopped caring lol.
Being an (admittedly) Apple Fanboi, I still watch all of their presentations. Which leads me to today's announcement...
Vision Pro and visionOS.
I have not paid too much attention to Oculus and whatever else is out there, so I am not fully aware of what they have to offer in terms of functionality.
I always just assumed they were for gaming and YouTube and whatnot.
Again, I'll put out the disclaimer that I'm a little Apple bias, so after watching the info on the Vision Pro, I was...well, not blown away, but I guess decently impressed?
I was sitting here thinking, wow, this (being AR/VR) could really be the next big thing. Or can it?
While watching the video of this thing in action, I couldn't help but think how stupid everyone looked while wearing these things.
Sure, they are not for looks, and it is one thing to be sitting around in your underwear messing around with one of these things.
But the way Apple pitched it really seemed like they were making a push for these headsets to really be a big part of daily life.
And I guess I just have a hard time imagining that ever being the case. But did anyone ever imagine having a tiny computer in their pocket?

Regarding Augmented Reality applications, I have had some very interesting conversations around utilizing AR to assist our Operations teams with MOP execution when working on Switch Gear evolutions. The idea was that the Engineer could wear the device, see an AR overlay on the equipment, and perform any switching necessary for maintenance or emergency recovery scenarios. The AR system would guide the operator step by step through the process, and if/when the system is fully mature, even warn the operator if they are reaching for the wrong breakers or performing the evolution out of sequence, with the intent to eliminate human errors and outages on critical systems.

I could see AR being very useful in any scenario where guidance/QA/MOPs/Etc are standard practice today. Just another tool to guide/backcheck/enhance performance in critical operations. I don't think we're there yet, but my guess it's coming quickly

I can definitely see it being used by pro users, game developers, designers, any situation where a degree of freedom and motion could assist the creative process and at this price point that’s probably the starting point

I prefer the reality that is right in front of me...rather than a virtual one...

I have been an Apple guy since day 1. I was reading a recap of yesterdays WWDC, once I saw the $3500 price tag on that headset I pretty much lost all interest

This did make me think it could become more immersive… but still not very practical. If your brain has no feeling and is isolated floating in your skull booting up a version of the world based only on electrical signals….. shame they can’t hack that as a projector…….

While it's a mistake to underestimate Apple, as a long time tech person (and former Apple software engineer), I have zero interest in this product. It looks technically amazing but I just don't have any interest in the uses.

If one hypothesizes a robust metaverse which is designed to be used immersively.... maybe? I could imagine preferring to put on a headset rather than maintain a desk with big monitors on it? But right now, I don't see it for mass use.

For gaming, sure. Particular applications like architectural model walkthroughs -- sounds perfect. And AR could be a game-changer for industrial applications. Light-impact AR solutions like Google Glass might even have a role in consumer uses.

But I'd wager against Apple Vision Pro being a huge-impact product. Apple sells 40 million watches per year; I'm guessing that Vision Pro will be less than 10% of that. Now, 4M units * $3500/ea is still $14B/year, a big business, but it's not a big impact on the tech/media market. (For comparison, Oculus Quest sales are close to 20M total, for a headset that costs 1/10 the price.)

I remember seeing this on Shark Tank. I don’t think they got a deal. IIRC the sharks though that gamers were too fat and lazy to want use something like that.

Look as I’ve been saying for 15 years we still don’t have a killer app. They suck for productivity as you can’t type while using them.

AR like google glass has uses and is used in many spaces esp in repair as ARcan guide a mechanic to assist in part removal and replacement.

but VR and business use… not gonna happen.

The killer app for this may revolve around porn, just like it was for the internet. I think the general resistance to this type of technology is people don't feel comfortable with wearing something on their face. People wear contacts to avoid eyeglasses, and eyeglass wearers pick something stylish to complement their face, but these AR/VR headsets always look dorky.

Already exists, virtual dildonics, as well as VR based porn have been out for years.